Russia, Ukraine accuse each other of slowing down prisoner exchanges

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of slowing down prisoner exchanges between the two countries.

Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said on Telegram early Sunday he is appealing to his Russian counterpart Tatyana Moskalkova to provide him a list of Ukrainian prisoners of war that Moscow is ready to urgently return.

Lubinets expressed his appeal amid claims by Russia that Kyiv refuses to take back its citizens, saying: “Ukraine is always ready to accept all lists and all our citizens! We are always ready to exchange prisoners of war!”

“Usually, the Russian Federation slows down these processes. And it uses it as a method of influencing Ukrainian society!” Lubinets further said.

A day earlier, Moskalkova said on Telegram that Moscow has repeatedly asked to intensify prisoner exchanges between Russia and Ukraine.

“However, due to the politicization of the issue by the Ukrainian side, the exchange processes are extremely difficult and slow,” Moskalkova claimed.

On the same day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova during a briefing accused Ukraine of sabotaging the process of prisoner swaps, claiming these processes are “politically motivated” on the part of Kyiv and are being used as a “media tool.”

During the same briefing, Zakharova claimed that the Russian Defense Ministry proposed the transfer of 935 Ukrainian prisoners of war as part of exchanges this year, but that Kyiv only agreed on the return of 279.

​​​​​​​Russia and Ukraine have carried out many prisoner exchanges since the war between the countries began Feb. 24, 2022.

The last exchange between Moscow and Kyiv took place mid-October when the two countries swapped 95 prisoners of war each.